Marathon Family Health Team

Meaningful medicine: connecting people, place and purpose

Greetings from Marathon! If you have the skills and a passion for rural medicine, and if you are looking for an opportunity to work in a beautiful natural setting...we have the opportunity for you!

Our collegial group is now recruiting 2 to 3 family physicians to join its award winning team in our RNPGA funded model of care. Apply today @ https://mfht.org/join-mfht/

We are an RNPGA community with 7 signatories. As a signatory to the contract, and new associate, you would be eligible for:

*Income $300,000-$500,000 depending on ER shifts. Please contact for further details.

*$137,721.35 in recruitment and retention bonus payable over 4 years.

*NPRI rate- $8,304.88

*Housing for $100/month + utilities for 2 years

*The support of our community “concierge” to help with community integration

*Support with moving costs

*Local mentorship and committed backup for your ER shifts

*Opportunity to participate in teaching and have some funding for “scholarly activity”

*Low office overhead

*Recreational incentives

Our seven (7) associate physicians provide primary care Clinic, 24hr ER call coverage, and low risk obstetrics to the 3200 residents of Marathon. They also serve two first nation communities- Biigtigong First Nation and Netmizaagamig First Nation. Total catchment area of 4500. We also host students and residents from the Northern Ontario School of Medicine(NOSM).

We strive to support each of our physicians to maintain a balance between our very rewarding work and things that we do outside of clinical medicine, whether administration, coaching, supporting family life or pursuing other life goals. There is no cost to join us, and no cost to leave our practice. 

Our experienced health team consists of seven Family Physicians, Physician Assistant, two Nurse Practitioners, Registered Nurse, Practical Nurse, Registered Dietician, Social Worker, Epidemiologist, Health Promotion Coordinator, Physician and Allied Healthcare Recruiter and Retention Coordinator(Recruitment of locums to assist in covering associate physicians practice during holidays/conferences, and full-time physicians if required), Health Care Assistants, Executive Director and nine support staff. We book one patient every 20 minutes, so it is very manageable for new graduates and experienced physicians. 

Our rural hospital has 9 acute beds and 12 chronic long-term care beds. The ER department is well organized and has the support of virtual ICU for critical care patients. We are committed to providing supportive mentoring and formal backup to new grads or new to rural practice physicians for the first several months of practice to enhance confidence in providing ER coverage.

To learn more about our collegial team, please visit www.mfht.org. 

About Marathon
Boasting beautiful, natural vistas including boreal forests and rich mineral deposits, Marathon features a young and vibrant population; 72% of whom are under 45 years of age. This beautiful area of the north shore of Lake Superior offers many after-work activities.

In the summer, we have ATVing, mountain biking, tennis, hiking, golf, ultimate frisbee, fishing, volleyball and more. Sea-kayaking is fabulous on the big lake - we are happy to lend you kayaks or canoes. Neys Provincial Park and Pukaskwa National Park(Largest National Park in Ontario) are each twenty minutes away. In the winter, we have cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, skating, hiking, indoor swimming, ice fishing, skidooing, HIIT Fit, and more. From golf in the summer to cross country skiing/ snowshoeing in the winter, you will enjoy our outdoor playground.

To learn more about our beautiful community, please visit www.marathon.ca.

We welcome your questions about practicing and living in Marathon. We are also happy to arrange a community site visit or a locum. For more information, please contact:

Associate Lead, Dr. Nancy Fitch, MD, CCFP, FCFP- [email protected],  OR  Physician Recruiter and Retention Coordinator, Brett Redden- [email protected]

What are locums are saying...

"One of the biggest reasons I keep coming back is that I have a great relationship with the other docs, clinic staff, and hospital staff. I feel like I am among friends, it's almost a social visit as much as a work visit. I don't feel isolated, and I feel like I have excellent support not just for emergencies but for all aspects of life."

" The thing which sets Marathon apart for me is the personal relationships I have with the people here. I feel that as a resident and over my first locum I really got to know a lot of people here personally, and every time I come it's like coming to visit my friends and mentors. I always feel welcome, and I feel at ease with them. I find often on locums you are stuck by yourself, and at this point in practice it's not as big of a deal medically as it is isolating socially. But in Marathon I feel like I am always welcomed in as part of the group by all the staff, and I've never felt like I have no one to reach out to."

Award Winning Team

2009 OCFP Family Practice of the Year

2010/2012 NOSM Preceptor of the Year(Dr. Eliseo Orrantia)

2013 OCFP Family Physician of the Year(Dr. Sarah Newbery)

2015 SRPC Fellowship Award(Dr. Sarah Newbery)

2016 AFHT Bright Light Award

2017 Influential Women of Northern Ontario- Executive of the Year(Joanne Berube)

2018 CFPC Early Career Development Award and the Team Williams Family Medicine Innovation Grant(Dr. Ryan Patchett-Marble)

2018 Association of Family Health Team’s(AFHTO)-Marathon FHT awarded for their Scalable Opioid Pilot Program(HARMS program)(Dr. Ryan Patchett-Marble, Dr. Nancy Fitch, Dr. Megen Brunskill)

2019 Innovation Fund Award(Dr. Eliseo Orrantia)

2019 SRPC Fellowship Award(Dr. Eliseo Orrantia)

2019 SRPC Fellowship Award(Dr. Nancy Fitch)

2019 SRPC Rural Long Sevice Award(Dr. Sarah Newbery)

2020 CFPC The Northern, Rural, Remote Family Practice Marco Terwiel Award(Dr. Ryan Patchett-Marble)

2020 OCFP Family Physician of the Year(Dr. Barb Zelek)

2022 SRPC Rural Long Service Award(Dr. Barb Zelek)

2022 SRPC Rural Health Champion Award(Brett Redden)

2022 CASPR Recruiter Recognition Award(Brett Redden)

2023 SRPC Rural Community Impact Award(Dr. Eliseo Orrantia)

2024 SRPC Rural Mentorship Award(Dr. Sarah Newbery)

2024 Healthcare Excellence Canada-Health Workforce Innovation Challenge (HWI= $62,000) Awards listed below

Innovation Kickstart Award = $2,000

Innovation Description Award (video) = $5,000

Impact Award = $5,000

Mini-Challenge #2: Senior Leadership Engagement Award = $5,000

Mid-Term Retention Progress Award (2nd place in Stream 1) = $15,000

Mini-Challenge #3: Sustainable Solutions Awards = $5,000

Overall Retention Achievement Award (2nd place in Stream 1) = $25,000